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Regy Thorpe hadn’t seen anything like it. He’d never called a timeout to quiet a run like he did Friday. His squad hadn’t endured an opening quarter all season that placed a game out of reach.

The Orange typically take the lead in the opening frame and never relinquish it. But North Carolina is a different monster. Any trend can be tossed out the window against the Tar Heels.

UNC ran circles around SU in a game that snowballed into a North Carolina massacre. The Tar Heels won every draw in a four-minute span in the first quarter, taking each one the distance for a goal.

Things escalated so drastically that No. 4 seed Syracuse (13-5, 7-3 Atlantic Coast) didn’t gain possession and conceded six goals in that timeframe in the first quarter of its 19-9 defeat to No. 1 seed North Carolina (15-1, 10-0 ACC) in the ACC Tournament Semifinals. Every time the Tar Heels scored, they returned swiftly with a draw dispatch and marched downfield to do it again.

“They blitzed us in that first period,” Thorpe said.

UNC actually barely blitzed the Orange because it always held possession. And when North Carolina pounced, SU stumbled.

When Syracuse miraculously won the opening draw against UNC’s draw unit — which leads the ACC with over 16 wins a game — the Tar Heels quickly forced a Molly Guzik turnover, perfected a clear and scored. That was a microcosm for the slaughtering to come.

After Emma Muchnick tied the game, it’d be a while before Syracuse’s players cradled the ball in their sticks again. Sarah Gresham ripped Guzik apart at the center circle and stormed downfield.

The Orange were flabbergasted by UNC’s intricate ball movement, involving subtle pings to every player circling the 12-meter fan. That prolonged to a possession north of a minute before Chloe Humphrey ripped a whimsical pass inside the 8-meter arc for a Darcy Felter finish.

Gresham schooled Guzik again on the draw, and the ball trickled downfield for Eva Ingrilli, who made a fool out of Dan Guyette. The sophomore skipped a low bouncer into the cage.

North Carolina’s run flaunted every trick in the book. Returning for the next draw, everyone at American Legion Memorial Stadium knew what was coming.

“(They) won every draw, just about, and just cashed in, and we couldn’t get any stops defensively,” Thorpe said.

SU’s defenders were frustrated, trying everything in their power to catch the Tar Heels off guard. That’s what Syracuse has done all season. Allowing seven goals a game but eight in the first quarter Friday couldn’t have opposed its norm more. Placing second in ground balls per game in the ACC shouldn’t warrant this.

Izzy Lahah — who just broke the Orange’s single-season caused turnovers record — kept flashing her stick but to no avail. Kaci Benoit tried diving at UNC’s attack and fell to the ground empty-handed. When SU brought its midfielders back, Bri Peters had her ankles taken like a basketball crossover when she lunged at Eliza Osburn, who scored North Carolina’s seventh goal.

“Our D’s been great all year, and (the Tar Heels) were hitting their marks, and we couldn’t get any stops,” Thorpe said.

It wasn’t a knock on Guyette, who stood on her head with eight saves Friday. But when UNC parted the sea to the cage, she was helpless. Her sub-eight goals against average couldn’t survive Osburn weaving through Syracuse’s backline out of her draw win to notch the Tar Heels’ fourth score — their second in nine seconds. Thorpe had to call a timeout.

He said his huddle discussed a different approach, hinting at abandoning the Orange’s typical zone defense that’s been their best friend all year. Forty-five seconds later, UNC scored a free-position goal after winning yet another draw. North Carolina won that battle 9-3 in the quarter and 21-9 on the day.

“They literally came after us,” Thorpe said.

Gresham was a machine on the draw and was immune to losing. She set up shop for the Tar Heels’ sixth goal of the evening, locating Kate Levy, who flung a pass to Felter for her second score.

The draw’s been SU’s most glaring weakness all year, and across the last two seasons, it hasn’t successfully replaced its all-time leader Kate Mashewske. But it hadn’t hurt Syracuse this season aside from its loss to Boston College.

Friday was different. The Orange were punished for coughing up tie-ups. They paid for every mistake, and UNC capitalized each time. Throughout the six-goal stretch, all six of North Carolina’s shots on goal landed inside the cage.

“That was a really, really good half for them, and they blitzed us,” Thorpe said.

For the zillionth consecutive time, SU lost the draw, was schooled on defense and surrendered a goal on an Osburn shot. The Tar Heels boasted a lead that put Syracuse into uncharted territory, so any change it made would be futile. SU tried Joely Caramelli and Ireland Mistretta in the circle, but it didn’t work.

By the time Peters got her stick on a draw halfway through the first quarter, the game was already over. A 7-1 deficit with the Orange not controlling possession for eons set them back. It marked the difference between a strong team and a perfect one.

“Carolina hit their marks,” Thorpe said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t.”

Published on April 24, 2026 at 10:31 pm
Contact Jason: jaglick@syr.edu | @jason_glick